I Watch Films: Bad Boys For Life

 

Bad Boys For Life

Isabel Aretas, widow of drug kingpin Benito Aretas breaks out of prison in Mexico with the help of her son Armando. The two ruthlessly plan both revenge and to get their hands on a stash of money Benito left in Miami. Isabel gives him a list of people to kill, one, the last, to be Miami police detective Mike Lowrey.

Mike’s partner Marcus Burnett has just become a grandfather and is considering retiring. Mike tries to dissuade him; when the two have a race to determine who is the most decrepit Armando shoots Mike to Isabel's fury. Mike goes into a coma; when he wakes up Marcus is retired. Recovered, Mike learns about the other assassinations and joins a new, hi-tech team Advanced Miami Metro Operations (AMMO) led by his ex.

Mike learns that an arms dealer might have supplied the assassin and his gang; tracking him down the assassins attack and kill him. Meanwhile Marcus is contacted by an old informant, afraid for his life. Despite being retired Marcus picks up Mike and they go to meet him; the informant is killed and Armando gets away despite some spectacular stunts from Mike. Shortly afterwards Captain Howard, also intending to retire, is shot and killed by Armando.

Following leads from the arms dealer, via his accountant, they track down one of Armando’s gang. Armando attempts to rescue him, but then shoots him to get a shot at Mike, telling him “Hasta el fuego”. Marcus manages to cover him, letting Mike escape into the ocean as Armando flies away.

They’re shut down and taken off the case. However “Hasta el fuego,” has given Mike the clue. Twenty four years ago he was undercover in the Aretas cartel and became Isabel’s lover. That was a phrase the two used for each other. He heads for Mexico City to track Isabel down, but Marcus, his ex, and the rest of AMMO join him for a couple of revelations and a spectacular setpiece action sequence.

This, then, completes my oddly ordered watch of the Bad Boys Quadrilogy. They’re elevated by the two leads, both of whom have charisma, their bickering never going so far as to be unentertaining. The lengthy gaps between each film seems to weigh more on Marcus (though there’s a fun bit where he claims Mike is dying his beard, which he later does for him when in the coma), and that’s why he’s always the one wanting to retire or find a less stressful job. And even though the set ups to the action sequences are silly, when they get rolling they work well.

Watch This: You saw another Bad Boys film and liked it
Don’t Watch This: Violence, jokes, nonsense that should have grown up